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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The water is too ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. rash — a series
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. field — for sport
  6. key — for a lock
  7. rule — a law
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — a subject
  10. key — in music
  11. firm — steady
  12. rule — government
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. key — the most important part
  15. firm — decided
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. firm — a company
  18. bark — to shout
  19. cell — in biology
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cold — not warm

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com